Renault will give the name of its radical Filante concept to a new ‘high-end’ crossover to top its global line-up.
A crucial component of Renault’s new ‘international game plan’, the new Filante – a French word meaning ‘shooting’ as in ‘shooting star’ – will be built at the firm’s plant in Busan, South Korea, initially for the local market, before being exported to other regions.
It will be revealed next Tuesday (13 January) as the range-topper for a revamped global Renault line-up that aims to strengthen the brand’s footing outside of its home European market. It is not planned to come to the UK.
In 2023, CEO Fabrice Cambolive unwrapped a bold £2.6bn strategy to launch eight new models outside Europe “to position the brand in the segments creating most value by 2027”.
The Filante will be the fifth of those eight cars, and the most exclusive; while details remain light, it is described as an ‘E-segment’ offering, and is expected to be significantly larger and more luxurious than the cars in Renault’s European line-up – likely measuring around five metres long.
It will be built alongside the third-generation Koleos SUV at the Busan factory, and is expected to be closely related under the skin – sharing the same Geely-developed platform and hybrid powertrain, in line with Renault’s strategic partnership with the Chinese manufacturer.
The Filante shares its name with the wild new Renault concept that just cracked 626 miles on a charge at motorway speeds with an 87kWh Scenic battery – itself inspired by the original Filante of 1956, a similarly conceived single-seater designed to break records.
Renault’s naming manager Sylvia dos Santos said the Filante name “instantly alludes to shooting stars, outer space and journeys – all of which beautifully reflect our vehicle’s stately design”.
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